Rescued from the Flames
by PrincessDaydream77
Summary: What would have happened if Toby saved Mrs. Lovett from being thrown into the oven and they ran away, only to be caught by the very person they ran to escape? Nellie and Sweeney are alive.
1. An Almost Bloody Wonder

Rescued from the Flames

Summary: What would have happened if Toby saved Mrs. Lovett from being thrown into the oven and they ran away, only to be caught by the very person they ran to escape? Nellie and Sweeney are alive.

Disclaimer: I don't own Sweeney Todd, so don't sue me.

Chapter One

_Mrs Lovett, you're a bloody wonder,  
Eminently practical and yet appropriate as always,  
As you've said repeatedly there's little point in dwelling on the past!  
Now come here, my love,  
Nothing to fear, my love,  
What's dead is dead._

_Do you mean it?  
Everything I did, I swear, I thought was only for the best,  
Believe me,  
Can we still be married?_

_The history of the world, my pet,  
Oh, Mr. Todd, oh, Mr. Todd, leave it to me,_

_Is learn forgiveness and try to forget,  
By the sea, Mr. Todd, we'll be comfy-cosy,  
By the sea, Mr. Todd, where there's no-one nosy._

_And life is for the alive, my dear,  
So let's keep living it,  
Just keep living it,  
Really living it!_

They were spinning together. She could hardly believe that it was happening. She, Eleanor Lovett, was dancing with Sweeney Todd, the love of her life, the man who was singing to her that they would always be together. It was almost too good to be true.

Nellie had barely noticed that Mr. Todd was leading her closer and closer to the open bakehouse oven, she was so wrapped up in her own euphoric dream. She was so close to the door she could feel the heat radiating from it, heating her skin to almost the point of burning. And she wasn't stopping or turning away, just continuing towards the fire.

Suddenly, a large weight lept towards the pair, hitting them with such force that they both went tumbling to the floor, the barber hitting his head on the piping-hot oven door as he fell.

With her eyes closed in shock, Mrs. Lovett couldn't see who her potential saviour was, yet still felt so much trust that she allowed them to pull her to her feet. She opened her eyes as she found her footing and gasped as she took in the figure in front of her.

"Toby!" she cried, wrapping her arms around the boy. "You're alright!"

"Mum, I'm sorry I took so long. I was packing our bags quickly, I didn't know 'e was going to try so quick. I'm sorry."

"It's alright, darling, I'm alright. Come on, we 'ave to get out of 'ere, Mr. T won't be out for very long. Let's take the bags and go, savvy?"

"Yes, Mum." he agreed, running up the bakehouse steps and pulling his mum through the door behind him.

"Hang on, darling. We should bolt the bake 'ouse, it'll give us more time to get away." cried Nellie, bolting the door firmly before following her adoptive son out of her shop, gathering their bags as they went. They had about eleven bags between them, but Nellie knew that they wouldn't be returning. She felt a slight sadness as they lumped the baggage between them, watching over her shoulder as the place she'd come to know as her home for the last twenty years fade into the night, but she knew that her life would be better for it.

"So, where we going then, lad?" she asked, turning her head from her meat pie emporium to her son.

"We're going down Blackpool. I booked the tickets for the train a few days ago, with the money you gave me for me birthday. We can find a place to stay together, proper cosy-like, and we'll 'ave made it, Mum, to the seaside!" exclaimed the young boy, smiling up at his mother.

"Yes, darling. We'll get our dream together." They then realised that they'd reached the very end of the extensively long Fleet Street. Nellie turned around one more time, staring at the place she have lived in for most of her life and had come to love as a home. She stole one last glance at her livelihood, then turned, sighing, to her only child. They rearranged their bags and linked their hands, setting off for the train station.

Neither of them saw the glinting silver reflecting from the deserted street.

A/N: What d'you think? This is my second attempt at accents, my first published one, so please tell me what you think. Not just the punctuation, all of it. Should I continue?


	2. He Ain't Gonna Hurt You

Chapter Two

A/N: Here's the second chapter, sorry it's quite short! Thanks to my brilliant reviewers, dionne dance, toni, newestnightmare, Raynie, the Guest and just a guest! Also, for toni, I know that Toby isn't her son, I just write son sometimes because she considers him to be her son.

As the steam began to clear, Nellie opened her mouth and breathed in the fresh sea air that was ruffling her auburn hair as the train chugged into the seaside vision of Blackpool. She turned to see that Toby had fallen asleep across the seat, holding a threadbare blanket to his chest. The boy had attempted to give the blanket to the baker, insisting that it was hers after all, but she had refused it, insisting that she wanted to stay alert to her surroundings. It was understandable after the night that she had had, so Toby didn't argue.

It was almost like a dream, like the song that Nellie had sung all those days ago. The only thing missing was her seaside wedding.

_'No!'_ her thoughts cried. _'I can't afford to think like that. I got Toby now, I don't need anyone else, especially not that murderin' monster. I'll be fine. We'll be fine.'_

As the train pulled into the station, Nellie gathered her share of the bags and gently shook her adoptive son by the shoulder. He awoke with a start, frantically looking right and left until he caught sight of his beloved mum.

"It's alright, love. We're there now, we 'ave to get off the train."

"We're 'ere, just us?"

"Just us, lovey."

"What if 'e finds us, Mum? What'll we do?" Toby was beginning to panic.

"Mr. T, 'e ain't gonna find us. 'E don't know where we are and 'e won't find us 'ere. We're safe. Now come on, darlin'. Let's go."

They walked off of the train, lugging their bags between them. They stopped when they reached the pier and took in the view. Toby could see now why Mrs. Lovett loved the seaside so much. It truly was beautiful.

They stood there for minutes, hours maybe. They weren't concentrating on the time. Eventually, though, as the sun began to rise over the horizon, they had to leave.

They didn't have to walk for long to find a guest house to stay in. Nellie checked them in for the night and they went up to their room.

That night, Mrs. Lovett slept with Toby in her arms, comforting him from the nightmares about the Demon Barber that he constantly suffered with. It was the fourth time that he had woken when Mrs. Lovett devised a solution which calmed the boy instantly. She drew in a deep breath and began to sing.

_Nothing's gonna harm you,  
Not while I'm around,  
Nothing's gonna harm you, darling,  
Not while I'm around.  
Demons are prowling everywhere nowadays,  
I'll send 'em howling, I don't care, I got ways._

_He ain't gonna hurt you,  
He ain't gonna dare,  
Others may desert you,  
Not to worry, whistle, I'll be there,  
Demons'll charm you with a smile,  
For a while, but in time,  
Nothing's gonna harm you,  
Not while I'm around._

A/N: Please review, you've been great so far, keep it up!


	3. Memories Made

Chapter Three

A/N: Thanks to my great reviewer, the Guest. Keep on reading and reviewing, guys!

Nellie woke early the next morning to the sound of seagulls chirping outside her window. She felt slightly drowsy and confused of course, having been up most of the night with Toby, but she decided that her own drowsiness would have to wait until she had done what needed to be done. Leaving a note on the bed for Toby, she dressed herself and swept out of the room.

Three hours later, Nellie returned to the room to find a fully dressed Toby sitting on the bed, his folded hands resting in his lap. Nellie smiled and placed a napkin-wrapped parcel on top of them. Toby opened it to find a large hunk of bread and cheese.

"Got you some breakfast. Eat up!" she smiled, prompting Toby to begin devouring the food.

"Where've you been, Mum? I were startin' to worry."

"I've been down on the seafront, negotiatin'. I found a friend, old friend of me 'usband's, who was sellin' 'is home down 'ere and 'e said that I can buy it off 'im. It's quite a modest fee actually, only an 'undred pound upfront and it's ours." Toby coughed and spluttered and began to choke. Nellie ran over and hit him on the back. He stopped after a few moments and looked up at her.

"An 'undred pound. Mum, we can't afford that." whispered Toby.

"I know, darlin', but I 'ad some savings and it's just about that. Maybe six or seven under. But I fixed that now. So we can move in this evening." Nellie put her hand in Toby's and squeezed it, her smile almost beaming. That was when Toby noticed that there was no metal digging into his palm. He gasped in horror.

"Mum! You sold your wedding ring!"

"Well, it's no good to me now, is it? Besides, it's what Albert would've wanted. 'E wouldn't've wanted me to be 'omeless, would 'e?"

"No, Mum, I s'pose not." agreed Toby, clutching the woman's hand tighter as a single tear rolled down her face.

"I've got to move on. Now eat up, quickly. We'll gather all our things and pay the bill later. But first, we can go down to the seafront and see our new 'ome."

Toby ate his bread and cheese quickly and jumped up to join Mrs. Lovett by the door. They then descended the staircase, smiling at the owner and left for the seafront, a slight spring in their step as they walked, still hand in hand.

The house itself was gorgeous, a tiny little blue cottage just like in Mrs. Lovett's fantasy. There were two bedroom, a cosy little kitchen adjacent to the dining room, a small parlour and a bathroom, with a little deck porch outside the door leading almost directly onto the sand of the most beautiful beach in England. It was Nellie's realistic idea of Heaven!

They eventually ended up tearing themselves briefly away from their new home to return to the guest house. They gathered their bags quickly and carefully made their way downstairs. Nellie paid the bill quickly, giving a couple of shillings tip, as Toby stared towards the floor.

"Thank you so much for everything, Mrs. Marshall. You're a real life saver for me and my boy."

"Oh, don't worry, Nellie. It was an absolute pleasure to have you here. And it's Linda. Now, remember to look in on me all the time, I want to see how that handsome young lad of yours fairs fighting all the lovely young ladies that'll be chasing him."

"Oh, don't worry about that, Mrs. Marshall, the only lovely lady I'm interested in is my mum." smiled Toby, feeling a little more at ease with the woman seeing how much Nellie liked her.

"Aw! Come on, Toby, love, you'll 'ave me in tears. Thanks ever so much, Linda."

"Any time, Nellie, any time."

The pair walked out of the door, lugging their bags and boxes down to the seafront.

"How d'you know 'er, Mum?"

"What, Mrs. Marshall?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, she's been running that guest 'ouse since I was a little girl. Me and my family used to stay there for our 'olidays each year, so I grew up with 'er, really."

"I like 'er."

"Me too, love. Me too."

By the time they finished talking, they were at the door to their home. Nellie pulled the key from her purse with a flourish and inserted into the lock, turning it and walking through the door. They set down the bags on the dining room table.

"Welcome 'ome, love."

Linda Marshall watched Nellie Lovett and her young son walking into their new home, smiling at each other.

"Good on you, my girl. Good on you." she sighed, turning back from the window to see a man in black standing at the opposite end of the room.

"Can I help you, sir?" she asked politely, catching the man's attention. He walked over to the little desk that she was sat behind and smiled. _Quite the dazzling smile_, she thought.

"Ah, yes, Madam, I should like to book a room for myself, please."

"Certainly, sir. Just the one, is it?"

"Yes, please, Madam."

"Well, that should be alright. Here are your keys, I just need to take a name if you wouldn't mind."

"Not at all." he replied, the smile still evident on his face as he took the keys and turned his gaze to the window, right out onto the seafront. He turned it back as Mrs. Marshall dipped her quill in ink and poised it above her ledger.

"My name is Todd, Madam. Sweeney Todd."

A/N: Cliffhanger! Please review!


	4. Family Business

Chapter Four

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers, Noodlemantra, Guest, TheOnlyEv1D, dionne dance, HellieLovett,newestnightmare and AnotherDeadBlonde, you're all great!

Nellie woke from her slumber to see an unfamiliar ceiling. She rose from her bed and walked to the window, smiling to see the lapping waves of the Blackpool coast. She dressed in a light blue gown that she hadn't worn for many a year and made her way down to the little kitchen. She had brought some food with her from London, but only really ingredients. She searched through her cupboards and found some flour, salt, water and yeast, giving her a great idea.

Toby awoke to the smell of fresh baking, a smile lighting up his face. He pulled on a shirt and trousers and made his way to the dining room, where there was a fresh plaited loaf laying on the table, surrounded by small helpings of butter and strawberry jam. Looking through to the kitchen, he saw his mother wearing a simple apron, covered with flour, kneading more dough at the workbench.

"Wow, Mum, this is great!" exclaimed Toby, alerting Mrs. Lovett to his presence. She smiled while she removed her apron, coming over to kiss his cheek.

"Eat up, darling. That one is for your breakfast, and these..." She gestured to the mess on the counter. "These are for my market stall."

"You've got a market stall, Mum?" asked Toby, looking up at his mum from where he was chewing on a slice of bread.

"Well, you didn't think I were gonna let the grass grow under my feet, did you? I 'ave to start earning money for us straight away, Toby, love. Now, I start tomorrow, I 'ave to do me own baking and selling, though, so I'll need you to man the stall for a while each day, and when we start running out of things, you'll need to do it yourself for a little bit while I go and bake more. It should work if we work together."

"What you making for the stall, Mum?" asked Toby, suddenly seeming a little nervous. Mrs. Lovett noticed this and sat down beside him, pulling him onto her lap and kissing his cheek, holding him close to her.

"Don't worry, Toby. I am never making meat pies again, not after the Fleet Street emporium. I might make some fruit pies, apple, rhubarb, that sort of thing. Then I'll make some bread, cakes, maybe a few biscuits, a rum baba or two. It should be successful if I don't muck it up."

"You won't, Mum. You're the best baker in the world, this bread just proves it. It's beautiful." he smiled, holding up the slice that he was holding and nibbling off a little more, while Nellie laughed and kissed him on the cheek again.

"Thank you, love. Now, we better get started, I need some stock to sell tomorrow, don't I? D'you wanna help me?"

"Yeah!" Toby cried, jumping from her lap to the kitchen. By the time, Nellie got there, he was wearing an apron as well.

They baked all afternoon and as they sat eating a small cake each for their dinner, they smiled at their handywork. They were forced to eat their dinner on the settee together, as the table was covered with cakes and pastries, pies and rum babas as promised. The floor was littered with boxes as well, containing bread and biscuits, so much so that it was as if they had to weave through a maze each time they wanted to cross the room.

After they had finished, Nellie handed Toby the house keys, giving him strict instructions to lock the door once she left and not open it to anyone but her, before pulling a plate of cherry pies from the table and setting off from the seafront. Toby locked the door and watched as his dear mother entered the little guest house they had been staying in only a couple of nights before.

Linda Marshall looked up from her books to see Mrs. Lovett in the doorway, holding a plate of pies.

"Oh, Nellie! How are you, love?"

"Fine, thanks, Linda. I just wanted to pop round, you know, to give you these. I can never thank you enough for 'elping me and my boy, but I hope these can 'elp." She moved over to the other woman and placed the plate upon the counter.

"Oh, Nellie, they look delightful, but you didn't have to get me anything, love. It was a pleasure to see you, all grown up, with a lad of your own, as well. You've made me proud, Nellie, and I know you've made your old Mam and Dad proud too." she finished, smiling a teary smile at the young woman, who mirrored her expression, before directing her gaze downwards, avoiding the oncoming tears by distracting herself, reading the names in the book. The smile remained plastered on her face, though less dazzling than before, until she reached the last name. Her watery smile was replaced with a look of genuine shock, amazement, fear. Her mouth went dry, but she managed to summon three words from the depths of her bone-dry throat.

"It couldn't be."

Linda noticed this and moved to comfort the woman, but was distracted by a creak coming from the guests' staircase. Nellie turned to the source and her worst fears were confirmed at once by what she saw.

"Hello, Nellie."

A/N: Cliffhanger again! Sorry for the late update, but they'll have to be more scattered now that the holidays are over. I'll keep writing, of course, but I'll have less time to do it in, not to mention eighteen other running stories and counting, but I'll try. Please review!


	5. Never Again

Chapter Five

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers, Noodlemantra, Melanie3356, dionne dance, SkeletonQueen666, calisurfingboy2, newestnightmare, Raynie, MaybeSage and Violet. You're all great!

Nellie couldn't believe it. All the effort she had gone through to escape the demon barber and here he was, standing in front of her as if the bakehouse incident had never occured.

"What are you doing here?" she managed to breathe, not quite meeting the man's menacing eyes.

"I would've thought that were obvious, my pet." came the reply.

"Don't call me that!" exclaimed Nellie, glaring daggers at the barber.

"Temper, temper, my love." he sneered, obviously enjoying the woman's temper, which was rising by the second as he smiled.

"Stop it!" she yelled, still seemingly oblivious to the fact that Linda Marshall was still watching them, her eyes wide with shock and fear.

"Nell, d'you want me to call the Beadle?" asked Linda, her voice shaking, despite the strength of it.

"No, Linda, it's alright. I can deal with 'im myself, I'm used to it." came the reply, Nellie's voice barely shaking at all. Sweeney's smile began to fade a little.

"Now you listen to me, Sweeney Todd. I 'ave 'ad enough of you treating me like dirt, enough of your 'arping on about 'ow unfair your life 'as been, enough of your bloody revenge! You'd think I'd 'ave learnt me lesson when you cornered me in your shop, but no. I kept me faith in you and look where that got me. You almost killed my son, almost killed me, even. But I know now that I was a fool to ever trust you and I'd be even more of one to trust you again. So, you stay away from my friends, you stay away from my boy and you stay away from me." she finished. The man looked a little shocked at the woman's outburst.

"Nellie." he stated simply, his voice sounding low and dangerous. The woman took this oppurtunity to run from the guest house, leaving the man behind her. She knew that he would probably be following her, but she didn't care. After all, she had had a lot more practice of running than he had, even if she was wearing high heeled boots. She sprinted to the door, which was now open, revealing a rather shocked looking Toby peering through it, his facial expression becoming fearful as he saw the demon barber running behind his darling mum. The baker ran through the door quickly and slammed it behind her without a moments hesitation, locking, bolting and chaining it, even jamming a chair under the handle. She then moved to the windows, ignoring Toby's wide-eyed expression as she closed and bolted the shutters all around the house. She then gathered a few blankets and things from their bedrooms and brought them through to the front room, locking their bedroom doors and placing the bunch of keys down on the table, lighting the candles that she had brought through as well as the gas light fitting. She finally sat down on the settee, her head coming to rest in her hands. Toby sat down beside her, wrapping his arms around her shoulders as she cried.

"Oh, Mum. It's alright. It'll be alright, I know it will. You'll make it alright." soothed Toby, rubbing circles on his mother's back in an attempt to comfort her.

"Oh, love, what've I done? This is all my fault!" she cried, sitting up to hug him.

"No, it's not, Mum, don't be stupid. It's not your fault, of course it ain't. You just made a mistake. We've all done it. Don't worry. He'll leave us alone eventually. We just have to lay low, right?"

"Yeah, I s'pose so, darling." she conceded, looking up at her son.

"Smile, Mum. Come on, please. For me." he begged, looking up at the woman with pleading eyes. She smiled brightly at him, making him mirror her smile in return, causing them both to laugh a little at their ridiculous appearances.

"Come on, love. Let's go to bed." sighed Nellie, her exhaustion wearing her out. They both dressed for bed, Toby into his corduroy nightshirt and trousers and Nellie into her cotton nightdress, before they arranged the blankets on the settee and laid down together, Nellie blowing out the candles by their side.

"Goodnight, Mum." whispered Toby, settling down to sleep.

"Goodnight, Toby, love." Nellie whispered back, sitting up with her arms wrapped around the now sleeping boy. "And I will keep you safe, love. I promise."

A/N: Due to popular demand, I am updating this story, even though it's a short one, I'm afraid. I'm sorry that my updates for this are few and far between, but I have 21 stories on the go and I have to distribute the updates as fairly as I can, not to mention the evil demon of writer's block that haunts me! I'll update as soon as I can. Keep reading.


	6. Keeping Him Safe

Chapter Six

A/N: Thanks to my brilliant reviewers, dionne dance, Melanie3356, Noodlemantra, newestnightmare, Guest, calisurfingboy2, leajailbird and ScarlettClover11. I'd also just like to point out that this is now my most reviewed story, so please keep it up. Also, if you read any of my other stories, please review them as well. Now, on with the drama...

As she always did, Nellie awoke with the early sunrise, a still sleeping Toby cradled against her shoulder. She sat for a while, just watching the boy, stroking his hair absentmindedly. This had become rather a habit for the woman, as she had been having terrible nightmares ever since the day that the barber had threatened her with his razorblade.

_We all deserve to die,  
Even you, Mrs. Lovett, even I._

The words still haunted her to the very day. The time that the man had truly changed in her eyes, yet she had still not listened to her gut instincts, something she had cursed herself for since a long time ago, instead vowing that she could change him. A choice that was almost the death of her.

She had learnt her lesson now, or at least she prayed that she had. She could not trust Sweeney Todd ever again, not after all he had done. He most certainly wasn't the Benjamin Barker she had used to know, that much was certain. As he had told her when he returned, that man was dead, leaving only a murdering, bloodthirsty psychopath still remaining in his soul. He wasn't that kind young lodger any more. He was nothing more than a cold-blooded murderer.

She was brought to reality from her dwellings as the young boy in her arms began to stir. He raised his head in a moment, smiling as he saw the woman beside him had already woken.

"Mornin', Mum." Toby mumbled, in a cheery tone, albeit one laced with sleep.

"Good mornin', Toby." Nellie responded, her voice showing that she was utterly lost in her thoughts.

"Are you alrigh', Mum?" Toby asked the woman, more than a little concerned.

"What? Oh, yeah, I'm fine, Toby." she replied, with just as little enthusiasm as there had been awareness of Toby's greeting. Truthfully, the boy still didn't quite believe in the truth behind the baker's words, but decided to push the matter no further. Instead, he sat in silence on the settee as his mother dared to walk into one of the other rooms, for the sake of propriety, as she dressed for the day.

It was a fair few minutes before she emerged, something looking like tear tracks staining her porcelain face, but still Toby made no comment. He merely reached up to wrap his arms around her as she went towards the door, holding her with all of his might. She smiled at this, wrapping her arms around him in turn.

"Goodbye, Toby, love. I'll see you tonigh', and I'll bring you 'ome something nice from the stall." Nellie told him, picking up a number of boxes before making her way out of the door and towards the Blackpool Marketplace, turning to wave to him awkwardly as she walked. Toby waved back vigorously, concentrating only on the window for a number of minutes, before remembering his mother's instructions when she had first begun doing the job at the stall.

"Lock the door, chain it, bolt, don' open it to anyone but me." Toby repeated to himself, as he precisely so. Only it was a little too late for that.

Wiping a layer of sweat from her brow, Nellie began to make her way home, a box of Toby's favourite gingerbread biscuits under one arm. It was tiring work, having a stall to run all by herself, definitely harder than when she had begun the job, when she had had Toby to watch the stall while she went and bought replacement stock, but she wouldn't let him leave the house now, not while Sweeney Todd still walked the earth. So, she had to make double her previous stock in the morning, then sell it the next day as well if she couldn't shift. It was tough, yes indeed, but the money was good, and as long as Toby was safe, Nellie didn't care how long she worked.

It was only when she approached the door that Nellie noticed something strange was happening. First of all, though the door, though chained, was not pulled to. '_That's strange_.' Nellie thought, running her finger over the chain on the door. '_Toby's normally so careful about the door. I just don't understand how he could have left it open without noticing it_._'_ Secondly, it was silent inside the house. Utterly silent. Something wasn't right.

Determined to get to the bottom of what had happened to her son, Nellie reached her hand around the pale blue door, fiddling with the silver chain until it loosened and fell, allowing her access to the house.

Once inside, Nellie had confirmed her theory. Toby wasn't there. She looked in every direction around the living room, even going so far as to bend down to check under the table or behind the settee, with no results. By this point, the baker was really getting worried. '_He's only young_.' the woman began to fret. '_What could have happened to him? Where has he gone? There's nowhere else he could be_.'

As soon as that thought entered her head, another landed over the top of it. The living room was not the only place in the house he could be. Though she had the keys to all the other rooms, in her rush to get to work, she had left the door of her bedroom wide open. Her eyes unconsciously directed themselves to the bedroom door, which was now firmly closed. Breathing a little more heavily in relief, Nellie made her way to the door and pushed it wide open.

"Toby, what are you doin' in 'ere? You gave me such a… fright." The end of the sentence came out almost as a squeaking sound, the relief draining out of her as she took in the contents of the room.

Toby was indeed in the room, as she had thought she was, but not alone. He was sat in a chair, near the centre of it, pressed against the back of the wood with his eyes widened in utter terror. Nellie could immediately see why, as standing behind the boy with a razor pressed against his throat was Nellie's worst nightmare.

Sweeney Todd.

A/N: Dun dun DUN! Please review for me, if you want to find out what happens next!


	7. Let Him Go

Chapter Seven

A/N: Thanks, as always, to my reviewers, Redejeka, thelovelyflorencelovett, LeaJailbird, NicoleKidmanFanXD and calisurfingboy2. I know I can always count on you.

Nellie could still hardly breathe. It was all her worst nightmares come horrifically true.

No doubt it was Toby's worst nightmare as well, as the boy looked utterly terrified, which came as little surprise to Nellie. He did have a razorblade to his throat after all, and Nellie knew better than most how that felt to experience. Well, at least better than anyone living.

Her maternal instincts kicking in, Nellie took a tentative step towards the pair, wincing outwardly as Sweeney pressed the knife in closer to Toby's neck, before stepping slightly backwards again, causing him to ease the pressure.

"Mr. T, why are ya doin' this?" she begged him, trying to appeal to something, anything, that could remind him of their friendship all those years ago. "Why would ya do this to me?"

"Why would ya do wha' you did to me?" the madman retorted, his hand unmoving as Toby subtly struggled against it, so as not to alert the man to his escape attempts.

"Mr. T, I didn't want to 'urt ya! I just… I wanted ya to move on, to live ya life without 'er. I made a mistake, and I'm sorry, but that 'as nothing to do with my boy. Let 'im go." By the time her statement was finished, the tone of begging in her voice was quite evident. To her despair, the maniacal barber did not seem to care. That was when she pulled out the only card that remained to be played.

"Wha' if it were your Johanna? If I was standin' there, with a knife to 'er throat, would ya want me to let 'er go? Would ya?" the woman asked him, the desperation in her voice very clear as she considered the fact that, should the man decide that this was not a question she should be asking, it was not only her life she was endangering, but Toby's also. After all, he was the one with the blade at his jugular.

Either due to a good choice of words or to the heavens watching over her, Sweeney's grip began to loosen. Toby breathed out a huge sigh of relief, as large of one as he could have done without clipping his skin on the razorblade, as it remained too close for comfort to the boy's neck. Unfortunately, the boy's attempts to remain unnoticed during his efforts to escape were unsuccessful, as the man seemed to drift out of the haze her question had left over him, and had returned to the cast iron grip he had retained before.

Nellie's sigh was then one of fear, mixed with a little disappointment. She had been so close to getting her little lad away from the raving lunatic, and that chance had been so cruelly snatched away from her. She would have to work even harder now to stop him.

"Look, Mr. T. It's me ya want. It's me what ran away, it's me what lied about your Lucy. Toby 'asn't done anythin'. Let 'im go."

"I'm afraid I can't do tha', Mrs. Lovett." It was the first time Sweeney had spoken since she had made her speech, and the smooth tones of his voice made endless small bumps appear on her arms. He was still as terrifying as he had been when she had escaped from Fleet Street. "Ya see, I lost my wife, because of somethin' you did to me. It's time for me to pay ya back, my pet."

In truth, Nellie did not know what frightened her more, the threat the barber had made to her, or the use of the pet name which he had used just before he had tried to murder her the last time.

Just as the man began to move his knife, Nellie had an idea. It was extremely risky, and potentially dangerous, but with a blade at Toby's throat, she had no other choice. It was all or nothing.

And so, contorting her face, the woman began to sob. It was not difficult to do, given that her son was in so much danger, but still, it was fairly forced. The action was also effective, as Sweeney had loosened his arm slightly, looking up in confusion at his former accomplice.

She used this to her advantage, taking a large step backwards so that her lower back was flush with the dressing table. Somehow, thank Heaven, the barber did not notice her reach behind the wooden table, running her hand along the wall until it was met with the item she had been searching for, and she pulled a large musket out from its hiding place, aiming the barrel directly at the man's head.

"I'm askin' ya for the last time now, Mr. T. Let Toby go." Her voice was just as bitingly violent as Sweeney's had been, and she no longer showed any fear, though the man did not do so either, his grip once again tightening around Toby's neck. The boy was the only one seeming fearful.

"And if I don't?" the man asked, daring her to say something wrong, so that his knife closing in on the troublesome boy's throat could be considered justified.

"Take a guess and find out." the woman dared in return, her heart beating so violently that she was certain it could be heard.

Never one to turn down a dare, Sweeney's hand tightened, the blade pressing down on Toby's skin, and puncturing shallowly as the boy cried out.

This was enough for Nellie, who aimed the gun properly at the source of her son's pain, positioning her finger on the trigger and clicking it into place, only the flex of a finger away from being rid of the madman for good.

"Come on, then, pet. Do ya worst." the man tempted her, moving the blade to rest above Toby's vein and pressing it in.

Then she pulled the trigger.

A/N: I'm sorry, I know that this chapter was complete rubbish, but please review anyway, just so I know what you thought.


	8. Another New Beginning

Chapter Eight

A/N: Thank you to thelovelyflorencelovett and LeaJailbird for reviewing the last chapter. You're great!

As the bullet flew from the barrel of the gun, none of the trio said a word, none of them made a sound. The only breaking of the silence came from the shattering of the glass, as the oil lamp was crushed to pieces by a tiny piece of metal. However, they did not all remain unmoving, and that was when Nellie took her chance.

Seeing that Sweeney was preoccupied, she sprinted over to her dumbfounded son, grabbing him by the arm and pulling him fiercely towards the door, hardly even stopping to shut it behind her, though taking enough time to jam a chair beneath the handle.

Once they had reached the outside, Nellie collapsed onto the brittle sand, pulling Toby down with her as she began to cry. For a moment, the boy thought she had been hurt, that Sweeney had managed to cut her when he couldn't see, but it was fairly soon that he realised no such thing had happened. She wasn't crying for anything lost. She was crying for something that almost had been. She was crying for him.

"It's alrigh', Mum." Toby comforted the women, crawling up to sit right by her side and wrapping his arms around her shaking form. "We're alrigh', we're safe now."

"And for 'ow long?" she responded, tears leaking endlessly from her eyes. "I try to keep us safe, and then 'e follows me every step o' the way. 'Ow long will we ever be safe for, Toby? Not a second."

"Don' give up, Mum. We got away once, we'll do it again. Just ya wait and see." The boy was desperate to comfort his mother now, her vulnerability scaring him, and that must have what brought the baker back to reality.

"I 'ope you're right, darlin'. I really do." Nellie told him, leaning her head down onto the boy's shoulder, as she wrapped an arm around his thin waist. Despite her always trying to feed him up, they did not have as much money as she would have wanted, and Toby refused to eat the lion's share of their meals, old habits telling him not to. It was out of kindness to her, she expected, as she had almost less meat on her bones than he did, but still. He was her responsibility now, and that included keeping him safely away from that monster.

Removing her head from his shoulder, Nellie stood up, pulling Toby up with her as she smoothed down her dress.

"Where are we gonna go now, Mum?" Toby asked, though a smile lit up his features at the woman showing some strength. It made him feel safer to know that she could take of them both without fear, as she had done before that dreadful Mr. T came back into their lives.

"I'm not sure, exactly, but we're goin' away from 'ere." she told the boy, allowing herself to smile as he did. "Now, off we go. We've got a long way to go, and 'anging round admirin' the scenery ain't gonna do much good for us now, is it?"

"No, Mum." the boy responded, following the woman as both of them began to walk away.

Three hours later, the pair of them were still walking. They had quickly stopped off at the bakery stall on their way out of the town, to collect their takings and the spare stock they still had leftover, and had paused for Nellie to say a tearful goodbye to Mrs. Marshall. They needed something to live off while they were away after all. But the stock was sparse and the takings were little, and Nellie knew that they would not be able to survive for long.

Still, refusing to give up so easily, Nellie set up in a deserted house, one that Toby had spotted, right in the middle of the countryside. The place had obviously been abandoned for years, as it had no connection to the gas network, but it was the best they could find, and that was good enough. After all, if Sweeney would not find them here, it was the perfect place to be.

Despite the fact that they had no gas and had to see by candlelight in the evenings, both and Toby felt far safer than they had done in Blackpool, especially since the madman had returned to their lives, and this was the best thing they could have.

That night, they were sat in their front room, which was bare except for the settee and the boxes lain on the floor, now containing a little less stock than they had done before, due to the tiring nature of the journey. While Toby somehow slept, though he tossed and turned a little now and then, only stopping when Nellie stroked his hair, the woman herself could not do the same, instead sitting awake and watching over her son.

'_It's my fault that he is like this.'_ the baker had thought many times that night. '_I shouldn't have left him alone.'_

Once again, for what may have been the fifth, sixth, even seventh time that night, Toby awoke with a start, crying out into the dim light of the room. The moment he did so, Nellie wrapped her arms tightly around the boy, pulling his head down to rest on her shoulder, as she tried to comfort him, the only way she knew how to do. With the song she always sang when they were in peril.

_He ain't gonna hurt you,  
He ain't gonna dare,  
Others can desert you,  
Not to worry, whistle, I'll be there,  
__Demons'll charm you with a smile,  
For a while, but in time,  
Nothing's gonna harm you,  
Not while I'm around._

As Toby drifted off to sleep, Nellie could only pray that her promise to the boy was true. She could only pray that this time, Sweeney Todd would not find them.

A/N: I know it's a bit rushed, but I was trying to get this out at the same time as The Fall and Rise of Nellie Lovett, like I always have. I know I don't need to tell you, because this is my most reviewed story, but still… Please review!


	9. The Stuff of Nightmares

Chapter Nine

A/N: Thank you to Redejeka, thelovelyflorencelovett and LeaJailbird for being a great reviewer.

When she awoke the next morning, the first emotion Nellie Lovett felt was fear.

Once again, in the darkness of the twilight hours, the woman had dreamt of the very man that was her worst nightmare. Well, in truth, the dreams were not dreams, but memories. The time he had held a razorblade to her neck, the time he had threatened Toby's death, the dance in the cellar, the knife at Toby's throat. Each time the first image ended, another began, over and over until she awoke with a strangled cry.

It had been so for a couple of weeks now, images of the man flashing through her mind endlessly through the night. The images had varied more every time she saw him, and the knife at Toby's throat had made its first appearance in her fretful dreams the previous night, given that it had only occurred the very same day.

As she calmed slightly, her breathing becoming more even, Nellie bit down hard on her lip, in an attempt to muffle her cries. '_After all, Toby had enough trouble sleeping at night as it is, without my silly nightmares at some ungodly hour in the morning.'_

Unfortunately, her attempts were thwarted, as the moment she thought that, the young boy beside her began to stir, his eyelids fluttering a little as he did so. For a moment, he glanced around with glazed eyes, not truly seeing as he was not yet fully awake. However, when he had finally awoken, the first thing Toby did was glance up at his mother, whose tears were still glistening on her cheekbones.

"Mum?" he asked, reaching up to wrap his arms around her after a minute, when he had gained the use of feeling in all his limbs. "What's 'appened, Mum? Why are you cryin'?"

"I'm alrigh', Toby. I'm fine, I promise." she lied, rather convincingly, if she did say so herself. However, Toby only seemed to buy the façade for a moment, before he was back on her case again.

"If you're alrigh', why were you cryin'? You still are." Toby commented, gently wiping a tear from his mother's face, though accidentally catching the edge of her eye with his finger, causing the woman to wince. She had sustained a blow from Sweeney Todd more than a couple of times, and the small cut beneath her eye had only just begun to heal, making it still tender to the touch. Nellie did not really mind though and brushed away her son's feelings of guilt momentarily.

"Toby, I told you. I'm fine." Knowing that her son would not leave it at that, the baker took a deep breath, preparing the words she would speak in advance. "I just had a bad dream, that's all, love."

Immediately, the young boy calmed. His mother had suffered from nightmares ever since the incident back in the bakehouse of the Fleet Street emporium, and this was not a new situation, for Toby to be questioning the woman over the reason behind the tears pouring down her face, the screams that had woken him from his own slumber, and every morning, she would deny that there was anything wrong. That was just the way it was.

"What was it about?" he eventually deigned to ask, a step into his mother's privacy that he had never taken before. Through all the nights of knowing she suffered, Toby had never once wished to know what horrors she saw in her dreams. He did not know the reasoning behind this decision, just that it was one he made whilst on the train. It may have been because she would not wish to talk of them, or she may have thought that he did not want them to plague his twilight as well, but the most likely reason was that he already knew what, or who, they were about. Sweeney Todd.

In all honesty, Toby had fallen prey to a sequence of bad dreams about the barber, but had never informed his mother of this fact. '_She's suffering enough as it is.'_ he had always told himself, when he awoke gasping for air from another of the terrors. '_The last thing she needs is me 'arping on at 'er. I'm the man o' the house now. It's my job to protect 'er. Protect 'er from Sweeney Todd.'_

From the evidence he had seen, the fears the woman harbored were far more severe than his own. He had never seen what the barber was capable of, nor had he known of his plot to corrupt his mother until the pact had already been made, whereas Nellie had cut up the bodies of innocent men and sold them to her customers in a pie. '_No wonder she 'as nightmares.'_ Toby thought. '_All the things she's been through over the last couple o' months.'_

Returning his attentions to the woman that lay on the settee beside him, Toby sighed as he saw her expression. The only time she used that expression was when she was attempting to conceal something from him, something that most often turned out to be the content of her nightmares. The boy doubted that this time was any different.

"Mum-" Toby began to say, but the woman cut him off with such speed that the first word of the sentence had hardly left his mouth when she did so.

"We've 'ardly got any food left, Toby. I'm gonna go out to get some bread for us, or we won't 'ave any breakfast this morning." Nellie informed her son, standing and crossing the short distance to the door. She had not changed into her nightclothes the previous evening, and so still wore the dress she had done yesterday. Though it had a few tear marks and was discoloured with dirt and sand, it was still perfectly acceptable, and their need for food was desperate.

"But Mum, it's not light yet." Toby reasoned, an expression of worry on his face. He did not at all want for her to go out at such an hour alone, when the sun had not yet completely risen in the sky, but she seemed adamant that she was going to go. When Nellie made up her mind about something, there was nothing that could be done, and the woman left the house without another word, making her way towards the market over forty minutes away.

However, she would never reach her destination.

A/N: Oh no! Here we go again! Please review!


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